Photo Gallery: North America in the IBU World Championships Pursuits
Chelsea LittleFebruary 11, 2013
Nine American and Canadian athletes competed in the 10/12.5 k pursuits at IBU World Championships on Sunday. Here are some photos of the action.
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Jean Philippe Le Guellec
Starting in the mid-30's, Lowell Bailey and Jean Philippe Le Guellec didn't let disappointing sprint results keep them down. Bailey cleaned a four-stage race for the first time in his career, placing 13th; Le Guellec had just one missed target to end up 15th.
Le Guellec Leads Canada in Sprint; Gow Shines in First World Championships Appearance
Chelsea LittleFebruary 9, 2013
Despite three errors on the range, Jean Philippe Le Guellec felt great on his skis and finished 36th, leading the Canadian team; Scott Gow had a great World Championships debut, placing 45th. He and Audrey Vaillancourt told FasterSkier about what it's like to race their first Championships in front of such large, loud, and enthusiastic crowds.
In the timespan of just two seasons, Nove Mesto has transformed itself from a ho-hum IBU Cup venue to an exhilarating superstadium for biathlon - one where, as several athletes claim, the fans are even louder and more enthusiastic than those at the traditional capitals of Ruhpolding and Oberhof in Germany.
Canadians Adjust to Venue, World Champs Atmosphere with 15th in Mixed Relay
Chelsea LittleFebruary 8, 2013
Rosanna Crawford started her very first World Championships race; Jean Philippe Le Guellec had his first healthy one in several years. He called the team's 15th-place finish "okay, but nothing phenomenal."
Burke, Bailey Top-20 in Antholz: North American Roundup & Photo Gallery
Chelsea LittleJanuary 19, 2013
Tim Burke skied the third-fastest course time in the 12.5 k pursuit in Antholz, Italy, today, and placed 14th to lead the U.S.; Lowell Bailey was close behind in 16th. Comments from Burke and USBA High Performance Director Bernd Eisenbichler, plus Sara Studebaker (39th place) explains why the Antholz range is tough and JP Le Guellec (38th) checks in before World Championships.
On Thursday in Pokljuka, Slovenia, Burke turned in a season best fourth-place finish in the 10 k sprint even though he never reached his top speed. Lowell Bailey finished 36th on a broken toe.
Bailey’s Tenth Headlines North American Performances in Hochfilzen; Crawford and Heinicke Top-30 for Canadian Women
Chelsea LittleDecember 8, 2012
Just like last year at this competition, Lowell Bailey had a good thing going. Today, though, he was able to clean his final stage and stay into the top ten; USBA President Max Cobb called the perfect late-race shooting a big accomplishment, and something that Bailey has been working on. Plus, more from the other North American biathletes.
Le Guellec 10th in Hochfilzen Sprint; Career-Best Breakthroughs by Crawford, Perras Boost Canada
Chelsea LittleDecember 7, 2012
Rosanna Crawford scored points in a World Cup biathlon race for the first time today, beating her previous best finish by almost 30 spots to place 24th. Meanwhile, Jean Philippe Le Guellec wrote in an e-mail that he was "totally happy with following up last week with a top 10."
As Skiing Takes Spotlight in Quebec, Biathlon Canada Aims to Leverage World Cup Win to Grow Sport, Solve Budget Cuts
Chelsea LittleDecember 6, 2012
The culture of Quebec is special, says Biathlon Canada High Performance Director Chris Lindsay, and it's no surprise that the province produced both Myriam Bédard and Jean Philippe Le Guellec - and, of course, Alex Harvey. Le Guellec wants to do for biathlon's visibility, and for Canada, what Bédard did in the 1990's.
Anatomy of a Win with JP Le Guellec and Jean Paquet, and Simple Pursuit Instructions: ‘Run for Your Life!’
Chelsea LittleDecember 3, 2012
JP Le Guellec's coach Jean Paquet told him to stop putting so much pressure on himself - so Le Guellec did, focused on skiing relaxed and knocking down targets, and saw his (and Canada's) first World Cup victory.
Kocher’s Top-Ten Continues Canada’s Roll; Perras, Crawford Also Qualify for Pursuit
Chelsea LittleDecember 2, 2012
ÖSTERSUND, Sweden – After watching teammate Jean Philippe Le Guellec win Canada’s first World Cup earlier in the afternoon, Zina Kocher had her work cut out for her to stay on task for her own 7.5 k sprint. “It was so exciting,” she told FasterSkier. “It took me actually a long time before my race to just calm down, because we were so excited. We watched the flower ceremony, and I was so pumped up...
BEND, Ore. – Jean-Philippe Le Guellec was riding high in 2010 when he finished sixth in the sprint, 11th in the pursuit, and 13th in the individual at the Vancouver Olympics. The Canadian biathlete – then 24 – was motivated and aiming for his first Word Cup podium. The 2011 season didn’t go quite as expected; he picked up just four top-20 results and late in the year received a diagnosis of mononucleosis, which explained...
North American Men Not At Their Best in Khanty Pursuit, But Find Value Looking Towards Future
Chelsea LittleMarch 17, 2012
Both the U.S. and Canada had high hopes and lots of opportunities in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, but for the men competing in the 12.5 k pursuit Saturday, most of those possibilities didn’t materialize. For the U.S., Tim Burke started with bib number four after a season-best finish in the sprint on Friday. He missed a shot in the first stage, and then one in each of the next two, and hovered around tenth position. But after...
The world’s top biathletes recently competed in six races in eleven days at World Championships in Ruhpolding, Germany, but as exhausting as that may have been, their season isn’t over yet. The racers hopped on a chartered plane and headed for Siberia – home of the Russian venue Khanty-Mansiysk – to contest three more races over the extended weekend. For American Tim Burke, the last World Cup series wasn’t simply something to check off a...